the search that became something more
Khoj means “search” or “discovery” in Hindi and Nepali — but for me, it’s also a feeling. A quiet knowing. The kind that happens when something unexpected meets you at just the right time. I first felt that feeling in India, where I lived for three years while working with a Swedish home furnishing brand. On my birthday, a friend from Assam gifted me a handwoven Eri silk shawl — soft, wool-like, and unlike anything I had worn before. That shawl planted a seed.
During this time, I travelled to Nepal to fulfill a long-time dream: hiking to Everest Base Camp. There, I discovered shawls so thin and soft they felt like clouds — in cashmere and merino — each one woven with beauty and intention. I brought some home, not knowing they’d become the beginning of something else.
a new path on the island Vrångö
Back in Sweden, after 30 years in seven different countries with the same company, our roads parted. It was the end of something that had been like a family — and the beginning of something new.
Since 2016, I had spent my summers on Vrångö — an island in Gothenburg’s outer archipelago with no cars, a ferry to the mainland, and a small year-round community of just 350 people. It was now time to move here permanently.
badtanterna
Vrångö is now my magic place. The sea and the cliffs. The pine forest. The rhythm of the ferry.
And the women that swim every morning - rain or shine - no matter time of the year. A habit that started during Covid, when people had more time in the mornings while working from home.
We call ourselves badtanterna — the wild swimming aunties — women who start each day together, in any water temperature. The ritual has became a lifeline.
the start of khoj
I returned to India and Nepal. First to Assam and Meghalaya, with the same friend who had first introduced me to Eri silk. Together, we listened, learned, and met the makers. And then back to Nepal to understand and see the production of the beutiful shawls of merino and cashmere.
Khoj began to take shape — not as a business plan, initially, but as a quiet calling.
what khoj has become
Khoj is shaped by all of this. The discovery of Eri silk and the artisans who work with it.
The clouds over Everest and rewarding myself with a cashmere shawl when reaching the base camp and the joy of gifting merino.
The calm and clarity of island life.
The friendships and rituals that keep us grounded.
The belief that something soft and handmade can hold meaning.
I plan to return to India and Nepal when I can — not often, but with great intention to find more beautiful handmade products. Between those journeys, I share what I’ve found from here, on Vrångö.
In the meantime, lots of love from Vrångö and I hope you find something you like
Pia